President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola is under fire for promoting her brother-in-law to Head the European Parliament President’s Cabinet in Brussels with a salary of some €20,000 a month.
Matthew Tabone joined the European Parliament in 2013 as head of Metsola’s office when she was an MEP. Since her election as president, he has been part of the Cabinet as Head of its Secretariat.
Metsola already attempted to appoint Tabone as chief of staff in 2022 but withdrew the nomination amid the Qatargate scandal. Independent candidate Arnold Cassola had also filed a compliant with the European Ombudsman at the time.
Critics, including various EU-based news agencies and MEPs from different parties, have accused Metsola of double standards and nepotism.
In his late 30s, Matthew Tabone is the grandson of PN stalwart and late Malta President Censu Tabone. He has been working for Metsola since she was elected MEP in 2013. In 2015, he married her sister, Lisa, who lives in Brussels.
After taking over the EP presidency, Metsola indicated her intention in 2022 to appoint Tabone to the top Cabinet position. Yet following harsh criticism and the fact that the EP was passing through a challenging period related to the Qatargate scandal, Tabone was dropped at the eleventh hour and replaced by Spaniard Leticia Zuleta De Reales Ansald.
Tabone was instead appointed Head of Metsola’s private office.
Following her strong showing at the last MEP elections and re-election as EP President for a second term, Metsola decided to get on with the move and give her brother-in-law the top post.
According to EP rules, MEPs are not allowed to employ relatives. However, this comes with a caveat: Only first-degree relatives are prohibited.
Although Tabone is not a first-degree relative of the EP President, many still pounced on the appointment, criticising a rare slip by the EP President.
Alex Agius Saliba, Labour’s Head of Delegation in Brussels, denounced the appointment, insisting that it was a case of blatant nepotism.
Accusing the local media of double standards, he said Labour MPs and ministers would be crucified if they did the same. He failed to notice how often that has happened under a Labour government.
The Shift has reported various instances during the past years where Labour ministers employed relatives, including wives and girlfriends of their Cabinet colleagues.
For example, the former wife of Agius Saliba was employed in the secretariat of Minister Ian Borg.
MEPs from various parties who spoke to The Shift said that while Metsola was not breaking the rules, her decision still amounted to nepotism.
“Metsola should lead by example and make sure that nepotism isn’t allowed. In this case, this was a very wrong decision even if lawful,” a green MEP told The Shift.
Metsola’s mandate as Head of the EP ends in 2026.
Between the the two,they are bagging more than 400000 euro annually…
So what?
Try for comparison the local chicken brained ministers and their brainless persons of trust bagging hundreds of thousands , and cannot conclude one project successfully.
Why not. Afterall they are more than capable persons for such important positions. Not like the PM nominee who was not accepted due to lack of experience.
That got nothing to do with the issue in question.
Mario Tabone did not suddenly come out of the blue with as little baggage as possible connected with his new appointment and posted to a top position he has not, for years, been trained to occupy.
That, in my modest opinion, would have been a blatant case of shameless nepotism – the likes of which we have been faced with time and time again in public-service appointments in recent years!
In this case, Reborta Metsola is entitled to appoint persons who are loyal and, most importantly, capable and efficient. There is absolutely no nepotism in this particular case!
Bollocks, how can she call out labour here when she is no better. I am very disappointed in her and thought she was not like the others but it seems I was wrong.
No, my friend. She is very, very much better than you think.
At what? Pigging out and keeping it in the family? I thought that was the domain of Helena dalli?
What a cunning observation by Alex Nepotism Aguis Netopism Saliba, of the Labour Nepotism party, The Labour nepotism government does not employ family members.
So to prove the point are they going to let them go and hopefully shed the odd 11,000 (25%) accumulated in the last 11 years. Mostly “Persins” of trust?
“Figures released by the National Statistics Office show that the number of civil servants grew from 41,507 in March 2013, when the general election was held, to 43,386 this March, an increase of 1,879 full-time jobs, or 4.5 per cent.”
“July 2022 totalling 51,415″
Of all people it is a labour party man who is complaining about ‘blatant nepotism’!! I understand Mr Tabone is a knowledgeable Brussels man who worked there at least since 2013. Choosing a real professional for the job contrasts sharply with the raw amateurs the PL invariably choose for top posts. It is incredible.
So the whiter than white Roberta is as bad as her colleagues here and has been found out as a hypocrite,you have went down on my estimations and as I feared it seems all Maltese politicians are bent in some way or another?
Tabone was appointed to Metsola’s staff when he was not in a relationship with her sister. The relationship developed afterwards and then resulted in them getting married. It is a different situation.
In addition, this position is one where trust in the appointee and effectiveness of the person is paramount.
That sufficiently explains the first appointment.
It does not however justify the current appointment – Metsola knows it and I hope she rectifies her evident ethical mistake, notwithstanding the awkward situation involved.
Personally not interested in what Labour (albeit it is no longer that) Party or its stooges say – they’ve lost all credibility years ago now.
Blue or red same sickness – go to HELL Malta!
Imma dik tista ta. Dik minn tal PN, allura tista.
Ghiduli ftit kif ic- cittadin onest trid li jkollu fiducja fil-politikanti maltin. KOLLHA laham mibjugh.
It appears that he has earned this position over the past years of hard work and high performance as also acknowledged by international reports including politico. Is she expected to discriminate against a relative if the position was based on merit? In my opinion definitely not.
If Roberta Metsola was from the Labour Party, and this appointment was made, would you be saying the same thing? The reasonable voter wants fairness across the board. Labour are reprehensible but this leaves an absolute bitter taste in my mouth. PN needs to be measured with the same yardstick. I don’t care quite frankly if he’s qualified for the job. It still counts as nepotism.